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“Not even close,” Gabriel said.
Ethan scowled at him. “What is it, Sadie?”
“The shouts are starting to drift out onto the floor,” she said, stepping into the room and closing the door behind her.
For just a second, Ethan took a long, hard look at her.
Sadie had been his executive assistant for five years. Tall, she had short, curly blond hair, dark blue eyes and it seemed to him that a smile was always tugging at her mouth. She was efficient, beautiful, smart, sexy, and completely off-limits. Over the years, he’d actually had to train himself to not react to her as he would if she didn’t work for him. It wasn’t easy. Hell, one look at her curves would bring any red-blooded man to his knees.
Her mouth was a temptation and that spark of barely restrained rebellion in her eyes had always intrigued him. Early on, he’d even considered firing her just so he could try for a taste. But she was too damn good at her job.
Walking toward his desk, she said, “I actually heard a couple people placing bets on which one of you would win this round.”
“Who?” Ethan demanded with another hard look at his brother.
She looked surprised at the question and shook her head. “I’m not going to tell you.”
“What the hell, Sadie...”
She ignored him and looked at Gabriel. “The new distributor is waiting in your office for that meeting you have scheduled. If you’d rather, I could tell him you’re in a heated battle with your brother...”
Gabriel gritted his teeth, but nodded. “Fine. I’ll go.” He looked at his brother. “But this isn’t over, Ethan.”
“Never thought it was,” he said with a sigh.
When Gabriel was gone, Ethan asked, “Did you bet on me?”
She grinned. “How do you know I placed a bet?”
“You’re too smart not to bet on me.”
“Wow, a compliment for me and a pat on your own back all at the same time. Impressive.”
“Is the distributor really in Gabe’s office or did you do that just to break up the war?”
“Oh, he’s really there,” she said, walking toward the bank of windows. “But I did want to break up the argument, so I would have made something up if I’d had to.”
“He’s driving me crazy.” Ethan turned and moved to stand beside her at the windows overlooking the Pacific Ocean. January could be cold and gray in Southern California, but winter seas had their own magic. The water was as dark as the sky, with waves rolling relentlessly toward shore. Surfers posed on their boards, waiting for the perfect wave, and a few boats with brightly colored sails skimmed the water’s surface. The scene should have calmed him—it usually did. But this thing with Gabriel was getting more irritating every time it came up.
“He still wants to make some changes to the chocolate line, doesn’t he.”
Ethan glanced at Sadie. “And now he’s got some woman helping him wage his campaign.”
“It’s not a completely crazy idea,” she said with a shrug.
He stared at her. “Not you, too.”
Sadie shrugged again. “Change isn’t always a bad thing, Ethan.”
“In my experience, it is,” he argued. He took her shoulders, ignored the leap of heat inside, then turned her to face him. Once she was, he released her and stepped back before saying, “People always talk about changing their lives. New car, new house, new hair color, hell, new beliefs. Well, there’s something to be said for stasis. For finding what works and sticking with it.”
“Okay, but sometimes change is the only route left open to you.”
“Not this time,” he muttered. Turning his back on her and the view, he headed to his desk, sat down and reached for the latest marketing report. He gave her a quick glance. “Sadie, if you’re going to side with Gabriel on this, I don’t want to hear it. I’m not in the mood to have another argument for change.”
“Right. Well, we all have to do things we don’t want to do.”
“What?” He looked up at her.
She blew out a breath and handed him a single sheet of paper. “I’m quitting my job.”
“You can’t quit. We have a meeting in twenty minutes.”
